Drink spiking on the rise in Greater Manchester as new report says action needs to be taken

Video report by ITV Granada Reports' journalist Jennifer Buck.

More incidents of spiking have been reported by victims in the North West than anywhere else, a new report has found.

Greater Manchester alone saw a 151% rise in spiking in just one month, from 57 in September 2021, to 143 in October.

The stats come as a new report by the Home Affairs Committee into drink spiking said it is difficult to know the true scale of the problem because many incidents are going unreported, with a lack of coordinated support for victims.

Greater Manchester's Mayor and chair of the GM Anti-Spiking Partnership, Andy Burnham, submitted evidence to the committee for the report.

Since September 2021, there has been a significant increase in reported incidents of drinks spiking to Greater Manchester Police.

In Greater Manchester nearly all recent reported spiking incidents happened in nightclubs or bars over the last year.

There were more spiking reports from busy bars and nightclubs that generally attract younger customers (age 18-24) and most reported incidents are from females.

Most reported incidents have come from the City of Manchester (around 90%) but this is reflective of the high concentration of licensed premises and young people in the city.

The suspected driving factors of the increase include the return of the student population and the opening of the night-time economy post lockdown.

It also coincides with greater media coverage highlighting the issue resulting in increased reporting.

The government is considering making spiking a criminal offence, which they hope would make victims more likely to come forward and signal to perpetrators that such behaviour will be punished.

MPs have said bars and clubs with a bad track record on spiking and wider issues relating to violence against women should be required to improve if they are to have their licences renewed.

The committee, which held an inquiry into spiking earlier this year, said places where spiking is more likely to occur, such as pubs, clubs and festivals, must be safe for all.

In Greater Manchester nearly all recent reported spiking incidents happened in nightclubs or bars over the last year.

There were more spiking reports from busy bars and nightclubs that generally attract younger customers, aged between 18 and 24, and most reported incidents are from females.

Most reported incidents have come from the City of Manchester, around 90%, but this is reflective of the high concentration of licensed premises and young people in the city.

The MPs also said there is insufficient data on prevalence, location, method, perpetrators and their motivations, which is acting as a barrier to policing.

A public awareness campaign should emphasise the importance of reporting incidents to the police, but victims should also be able to come forward anonymously

According to a survey run by the committee, 84% of victims said they did not receive support after the first time they were spiked, and 72% said they did not report the incident.

The questionnaire was completed by 1,895 victims and 1,413 witnesses between December 2021 and January 2022.

Most victims were female, with 139 victims identifying as male and 21 people choosing “other”, and most respondents were younger than 25, although victims of all ages took part.

According to the Greater Manchester stats most victims remain unaware of how they may have been spiked and it is difficult to detect drugs spiking as the drugs often used only remain in the bloodstream for a few hours.

Feedback from victims in the region indicates that suspected spiking goes unreported, so the prevalence levels are likely to be higher than the reported figures.  

Some victims do not report suspected incidents to the police. This makes it difficult to say with any confidence how prevalent spiking is.

Encouraging reporting of spiking and providing reassurance to victims that the crime will be taken seriously is essential.

The committee said victims’ access to forensic testing is poor, and the government must place a duty on all police forces to provide quick testing of a quality that can be used as evidence in court.

The government should commission research to aid understanding of spikers’ motives, and improve the prevention of attacks.

The low number of successful prosecutions means there is no clear deterrent for spikers, so the government should examine what barriers exist and devise strategies to overcome them.

Home Affairs Committee chairwoman, Dame Diana Johnson, said victims are often left with feelings of “self-doubt and vulnerability” as they have little idea what happened or who spiked them.

“It isn’t good enough to tell people to put lids on their drinks or normalise taking a testing kit out with you", she said.

“Everyone should have the right to go out and enjoy themselves without fear.“

"The message needs to be sent to perpetrators that spiking is absolutely unacceptable and will be punished.”